Gabriel Sanchez

Shattered Glass, the acclaimed exhibition of new art by emerging artists of color that was shown at Jeffrey Deitch Los Angeles last spring, will be presented in an expanded version in the Moore Building in the Miami Design District from November 29 – December 5, 2021. The exhibition will be Deitch’s sixth and final project in the Moore Building atrium space before the iconic site comes under the stewardship of WoodHouse, the concept creation collaborative. The exhibition is presented in partnership with the Miami Design District, WoodHouse and GOAT.

The Los Angeles version of Shattered Glass, curated by Melahn Frierson and A.J. Girard, was more than an exhibition, it was a phenomenon, attracting 1,000 visitors per day in its final weeks. Shattered Glass connected with a diverse art audience, giving visitors a rare opportunity to see art that reflected their own life experience. Frierson and Girard selected emerging artists from Los Angeles, Miami, Baltimore, Dallas, New Jersey and less likely cities like Fresno. Many of the artists knew each other prior to the exhibition. The show represented communities in addition to individual talents. The expanded Miami version of Shattered Glass will include fifteen new artists.

The painting, sculpture and photographic works in the exhibition are all figurative. The subject matter is often the artists’ family and friends. Their primary subject is their own life and their community. Many of the works also display extraordinary technical skill and mastery of traditional painting techniques. A number of the artists also apply industrial techniques such as air brush and use unexpected materials like adobe, glitter and synthetic hair.

The participating artists are strongly socially engaged. Several of the artists donate part of their sale proceeds to the people portrayed in their works. Many of the works have a powerful social message. There is also an emphasis on the strength of family and community ties. In a story on the exhibition in The New York Times, Robin Pogrebin wrote: “There is a joyfulness in the work, one that attests to the resilience of the artists and the people they depict.

With a few exceptions, all of the artists are in their ‘20s and early ‘30s. The exhibition represents a remarkable new generation that connects with a new art audience. 

Melahn Frierson is Director of Jeffrey Deitch Los Angeles. AJ Girard is an independent curator and arts educator, known for his community outreach. 

Jeffrey Deitch has been presenting exhibitions and public art projects in the Miami Design District since 2002. 

WoodHouse is based in Dallas and is a multidisciplinary concept development company that creates, develops and operates culture-rich, relationship-driven hospitality brands.

The Moore Elastika Building is the Design District’s most historic venue built in 1921 as the furniture showroom space for Moore and Sons. The unique building features four floors of arcaded spaces totaling more than 21,000-square-feet. The central atrium accommodates 2,000 people for receptions and 1,000 for seated events. On permanent display in the atrium is the site-specific installation "Elastika," created by Iraqi-born, architect Zaha Hadid, who was commissioned to craft a piece that would both complement and contradict the architecture of the landmark building for the inaugural Design Miami/ in 2005 (design.05), where she was awarded the first-ever Design Miami/ Designer of the Year Award. The piece evolved as an architectural experiment exploring concepts of connectivity – emerging from the rigidly orthogonal structural frame of the 1921 Moore Building’s atrium – and serves as an extrusion of the spatial concepts inherent within Hadid’s architecture. Form does not follow only function but is also defined by the narrative of spatial flow; a fluid architecture that emerges from the city and also constantly makes connections. The Moore Building is located at: 191 NE 40th Street, Miami, Florida 33137. The Miami Design District is a one-of-a-kind neighborhood that combines luxury shopping, galleries, museums, design stores, restaurants, and major art and design installations all within an architecturally significant context. The Miami Design District is owned and operated by Miami Design District Associates, a partnership between Dacra, founded and owned by visionary entrepreneur Craig Robins, and L Catterton Real Estate, a global real estate development and investment fund, specializing in creating luxury shopping destinations. As Miami becomes increasingly known for its own rich culture, the growth of the Miami Design District further reflects how the city is deserving of its place on the global stage.

GOAT is the global platform for the greatest products from the past, present and future. Since its founding in 2015, GOAT has become the leading and most trusted sneaker marketplace in the world, and has expanded to offer apparel and accessories from select emerging, contemporary and iconic brands. Through its unique positioning between the primary and resale markets, the company offers styles across various time periods on its digital platforms and in its retail locations, while delivering products to over 30 million members across 170 countries.

View Deitch.com